Challengers of the Unknown
by Doctor Sweet
Summary: Seven DC superheroes, exploring other planets, times, and dimensions. Rated T for safety. Takes place in a shared universe with /s/10891559/1/Justice-League-Infinite.
1. Down the Rabbit Hole

My name is Jefferson Pierce, but a lot of people know me as Black Lightning. I'm a metahuman; I control electricity. I teach physics at Theodore Knight High School, and in my spare time, I put on a costume and use my powers to clean up organized crime in my city.

Let me set a scene for you. I'm taking my class on a field trip to STAR Labs, Metropolis's biggest scientific center. We're walking past the astronomical observatory, when I hear Maxine Hunkel, one of my students, whispering to another girl. "Maxine, please pay attention," I say.

"Yes, sir," she responds. We keep walking, and I start describing the equipment in the observatory. Then, out of the corner of my eye, I see some nutjob in a white mask and a yellow cape sprinting own the hallway we had just come out of. _Certainly _looks_ like a supervillain_.

"Excuse, me class, I need to use the restroom. Be right back, " I say. I jog down to the restroom, and change into my Black Lightning costume, (which I carry in a briefcase for emergencies like this.) I run out of there and start searching for that maniac. It doesn't take me long; I spot him at a door marked, "Clearance Level 6". He throws some sort of chemical onto the lock, and it completely dissolves, letting him walk right through. I pull out my cell phone and send a text to my crimefighting pal Vixen, telling her to come to the eleventh floor of STAR Labs in a hurry, and then take off after the perp. Following him at about twenty feet, I see two guards on the ground with bloody holes in their heads. I start to run even faster; no one else is gonna die today.

Suddenly, a red-haired girl in a green dress and candy-cane stockings flies past me. I don't get a good look at her face. I arrive in a room with all sorts of sci-fi looking stuff, where that flying girl, the supervillain, and a scientist in the STAR Labs uniform are. The redhead points her arms at the perp, and I hear a _whoosh_ that sounds like wind as he falls on his face. I take the opportunity, and run up and grab him. I look over my shoulder to get a better look at the other superhero, and immediately recognize her as my student, Maxine Hunkel. I want to say something to her, but I know I can't reveal my identity to anyone, let alone the Nobel Prize winner in the chatterbox category.

While I'm looking at Maxine, the perp takes that chance to joint-lock me and escape my grip. He runs toward this crazy-looking gun, and I throw a small lightning bolt at his leg. He falls down again. The scientist, who I recognize as famed physicist Kimiyo Hoshi, runs at him. I put out my arm to tell her to stop; this is too dangerous for civilians.

Finally, the Vixen comes in, the same way I did. Running at super-speed, she clocks the perp. He's still conscious, though, and he manages to grab that gun he wants so badly. Vixen, Maxine, Doctor Hoshi, and I all run at him, but before we can do anything, he pulls the trigger and opens some sort of portal on the floor, which he falls into.

What else is there to do? I jump in after him, and the others follow. My last sight before the world around me disappears is a man, in an outfit even crazier than mine, holding on to a **** missile, flying right at me.

* * *

My name is Dr. Kimiyo Hoshi. I am one of the world's premier physicists, and one of STAR Labs' three Directors, alongside Doctors Palmer and Morrow. As of late, I have devoted an area of STAR Labs to storing technological artifacts recovered from super-criminals, both to keep them out of the wrong hands, and to hopefully reverse-engineer them.

I am working in said area when the man known as Chronos, whose time portal generator we had stored, runs in. He was quickly followed by two superheroes in absolutely _ridiculous_ costumes, who started attacking the villain with wind and lightning. This was obviously a risk to the delicate technology all around them, so I ran to try to apprehend Chronos myself. I was stopped, and a third hero ran in. She attacked Chronos, but he managed to reach what he came for: his time machine. He escaped by creating a portal on the floor. Of course, I had to recover that potentially world-changing machine, so I jumped in after him. Those three heroes joined me, looking for a fight as superheroes always are. As the four of us fell into the time portal, I saw someone, likely another super-moron, holding on to a _missile_ and flying right at us.

* * *

My name is Rory Regan. I run a little pawnshop in the Robbinsville area of Gotham City, called Rags'n'Tatters. I also happen to own a magic suit of rags that collects the souls of evildoers and draws upon their energy for power. At nights I go out and use said suit to clean up the streets. I'm not that well-known in the capes-and-tights community, since most of the people I punch are just muggers and thieves; never really chanced upon super-criminals.

So it's a typical Thursday morning. I'm sitting at the checkout counter, no one else is in the store. Guess it's gonna be a slow day. I decide to switch on the TV. I'm reaching for the remote, when suddenly I'm in a whole different place. Guess I should back up for a second and explain a couple things about my suit. First off, I'm always wearing it, even when I'm not. When I need to look like an average Joe, it disappears, and when I need to be a vigilante, it magically replaces my regular clothes. Second, my suit can teleport me to where I need to be. And the suit, not me, decides where that is. Today, that place is some room full of what look like supervillain weapons, where Black Lightning, the Vixen, some flying teenager, and some scientist are fighting supervillain Chronos. (So sue me; I'm a superhero fanboy.)

Borrowing some energy from a serial killer, I turn myself invisible. Better to have surprise on my side. I run at Chronos, but I can't lay a finger on him before he shoots the ground with his time gun, opening a portal into which everyone in the room subsequently falls, including yours truly. Right as we're falling, some guy on a missile crashes through the wall and flies into the time hole with us. _And before a single cup of coffee_.

* * *

My name is Mari Jiwe. I'm a world-famous fashion model. I'm also superhero, who goes by Vixen. A few years back, on a trip to my homeland of Zambezi, I stole a mystical artifact called the Tantu Totem from my uncle, who had been using it for evil. The ancient legends I heard as a girl told me that there was a mysterious force called the Red, that connected all the world's animals together. The Tantu Totem links into the Red, allowing me to borrow any ability from any animal, anywhere.

It's about 9 in the morning. I'm on the street, giving an interview to Steve Lombard of the Daily Planet, when I get a text from an occasional crimefighting partner of mine, Black Lightning, telling me to come to the eleventh floor of STAR Labs. "Gonna have to come back later, Steve. This is kind of important," I say.

Luckily, I'm just one block away from my destination. I run in the front door, where I'm asked if I have an appointment. "My name's Mari Jiwe," I say. "You've probably heard of me. I'm doing a science-themed photoshoot today, and I'm kind of late." Before the guy at the door can say anything else, I run past him to the nearest ladies' room. I go inside and put on my Vixen costume, which I carry around in a $500 designer purse, and stash my other clothes under a sink.

I borrow speed from a cheetah, and run up to Floor 11 in record time. I switch to the hearing of a greater wax moth, and notice a struggle in a hallway that should be locked. I switch back to cheetah speed and run to said hallway. I arrive and see a struggle between Black Lightning, some scientist in a STAR Labs uniform (a white lab coat on top of a black jumpsuit with a white star on it), some flying teenage girl in green, and this time traveler I fought once named Chronos. I run at Chronos, switch to gorilla strength, and punch his head. He manages to shake it off. _Must be wearing something stronger than cloth_. He grabs his time gun off a shelf and shoots the ground, opening a time portal, which he jumps into. Everyone else in the room jumps in after him. As I'm falling, I hear something crash through the wall. I can't see what it is past everyone else, but it sounds dangerous.

* * *

My name is Shilo Norman. You've probably heard of me. I also go by Mister Miracle, the world's greatest escape artist. I've sold out Madison Square Garden.

I'm doing a show at Soder Cola Stadium in Metropolis. I run my usual tricks; run-of-the-mill stuff for me, unthinkable for anyone else. But for the encore, I pull out my show-stopper: the missile escape. It's a simple concept, really. I strap myself to a missile with about fifty different types of locks, and an assistant sends the missile up into the sky. I pick every lock, take control of the missile, disarm the payload, and pilot it back to the ground. I've done it a million times, but this time is different.

Right as the missile takes off, I feel something different. I turn my head as best as I can and look over my shoulder. My worst fear is confirmed: I'm flying in a direction other than straight up. _Someone jacked the targeting system_. I start picking the locks, hoping that I can fix this before I hit a building. I escape my chains even faster than usual, grab onto my usual handhold, and get a better look at my situation. I'm headed straight for the STAR Labs skyscraper. _I can still fix this_. I then discover yet another obstacle—the panel I use to access the targeting system is welded shut. Luckily, the right index finger of my costume comes outfitted with one of the world's hottest blowtorches. I manage to cut open the panel and gain control, but it's too late. I can't steer away from STAR Labs.

I crash through the wall, knowing I'm about to die and take others with me, when I see a glowing hole in the ground. Absolutely no idea what it could be, but it's my only chance at saving my own life and those of thousands of others. I steer down. _This is the craziest thing that's ever happened to me_.

* * *

My name is Zauriel. I'm an angel, working for what most humans call God, though I prefer to call it the Presence. Since the dawn of time, I've operated on the metaphysical plane, giving people visions and such. A few years back, though, I decided that Heaven, or the Silver City, was beginning to bore me. I became the first angel to operate on Earth. I live in a floating, invisible base called the Aerie, and I fly around the world saving people from housefires, suicide attempts, and other dangerous stuff.

I'm at the Aerie one day, watching TV, when I get a voice in my head. I've heard this voice a few times—it's the Presence. It tells me that I'm needed in Metropolis in the year 5233, that that there's a ride waiting for me out front, and that I'll need a weapon. I grab my standard-issue flaming sword and fly out the door, where I see a familiar sight. It's the Chariot of Fire, the same one that brought Elisha into heaven all those years ago. I've driven this thing all over creation. I climb inside, and see a note left in the driver's seat, in the same handwriting as the Book of Life, and I'm not talking about Guillermo Del Toro. The note says, "Keep it." Mentally fist-pumping (the Chariot is quantifiably the greatest ride in all creation), I snap the reins and steer to Metropolis, 5233.

* * *

Hey, everyone! My name's Maxine Hunkel! I'm a sophomore at Theodore Knight High School in Metropolis _oh!_ and I'm also a metahuman with wind powers. I also sometimes put on this cool green outfit and use my powers to fight bad guys as Cyclone! Well, really only the one bad guy so far but you know what I mean.

So I'm on this field trip with my physics class to STAR Labs which is _totes_ one of the coolest places I've ever been! I'm a _really _good multitasker, so while I'm listening to my teacher and looking at all the amazing technology around me, I'm talking to my BFF Megan about everything we're seeing. My teacher, Mister Pierce (who's a secret superhero with lightning powers), tells me to pay attention, which I'm doing, but Mister Pierce doesn't realize I am because not everyone's as good a multitasker as me _ANYWAY_—Mister Pierce then runs off to the bathroom. I'm smart enough to realize that he's changing into his hero costume, so I look around for what he might be dealing with, and sure enough there's a supervillain who looks like Chronos, the time traveler! I tell my class that I need to use the bathroom as well and run to the bathroom. I pull out my Cyclone costume (it's really thin so I just ball it up and keep it in my pocket) and use my wind powers to fly after Chronos.

Mister Pierce—oh wait, I should probably start calling him Black Lightning—chases Chronos down some confidential-looking hallway. I follow him and eventually get past him and start fighting Chronos. I blast him in the back with wind which makes him fall over, and then Black Lightning grabs him by the collar. He gets out and starts running for his time gun, which is laying on a shelf, but then _another_ awesome superhero runs in the room! The Vixen runs to Chronos at super-speed and punches his head, but Chronos gets back up and grabs his time gun! He makes a portal on the floor and jumps in, and all the heroes, plus the physicist Kimiyo Hoshi, jump in after him. I know that I'm a superhero now, and that it's my duty to fight bad guys, but have you ever _tried_ jumping into a time portal?! It's _really scary_, guys! Anyway, then this missile with some guy hanging on to it crashes through the wall, so I panic and jump into the portal. The missile flies in after me, though, so as a protective measure it wasn't that smart. Still, I'm going to the past! Or the future! Crazy!


	2. Battle of the Ages

_Zauriel_

After a few minutes, I arrive at my destination: 53rd-century Metropolis—or at least the area once called Metropolis. I've been around the timestream enough times to know that during this period, the planet Terra is used entirely for agriculture. This region in particular is one giant onion field. Quite a distance above me, a portal opens with seven people falling out of it, who looks like they're from the 21st century. I become alarmed, especially because one of these time travelers is holding on for dear life to a decent-sized missile.

"Get off the missile!" I yell in the most commanding voice I can muster. (For an angel, that's pretty darn commanding.) The strangely dressed time traveler, who I assume is some sort of superhero, complies and jumps off. I realize that they're all seven going to fall to their deaths if I don't do something. _WWJD?_ Then it hits me. I pull the fish-and-loaves trick, multiplying the onions under them until they form an enormous pile that breaks their fall. But the missile, which is swerving wildly, is still heading toward the ground, threatening to cause a major crop fire. I make the ground open up and swallow it like Korah.

Out of the corner of my eye, I spot a space drone, harvesting onions with a tractor beam. Before I can do anything to stop him, one of the people in the onion pile (who I recognize as some supervillain, though I can't remember his name) turns on some sort of rocket boots and flies into the beam, boarding the drone. It then teleports away, presumably having reached capacity. I fly over to Mount Onion to check on the others.

"What exactly just happened?" asks a woman in a lab coat.

` "You're in the 53rd century, a supervilain just boarded a cargo ship and escaped into space, and I'm an angel on a divinely ordained mission, which probably has something to do with him," I say. "This is probably a bit of a shock to you, so why don't we all come down and get acquainted?" A girl in a green dress and a woman in an orange costume fly down from the mound; I summon the strength of Samson and carry the other three to the ground.

Once everyone's together, I ask, "So, what brings you all to this time period?"

* * *

_Ragman_

I turn off my invisibility spell and teleport to the ground. Every head turns to me, and the angel says, "Alright, I'm _really_ gonna need an explanation now."

"Well," says Vixen, "this supervillain Chronos stole back his time gun, which was being kept in a laboratory. The lady in black and white was a scientist studying it. Myself, the guy in blue and yellow, and the girl in green were trying to stop him. The guy in red and yellow randomly crashed into the lab on his missile. No idea where that rag dude came from."

"Well…okay then," says the angel. "Why don't we all exchange names? I'll go first. I'm Zauriel."

"Vixen," says Vixen.

"Black Lightning," says Black Lightning.

"I'm Ma—Cyclone!" says the girl in green.

"Dr. Kimiyo Hoshi," says the lady in the lab coat.

"Shilo Norman, but you probably know me as Mister Miracle," says Mister Miracle, who I finally recognized after we all sat down.

All eyes then turn to me. "What about you, rags?" says Black Lightning. _Wait, did I seriously go this long without thinking of a codename? How did I forget that?_ I decide to say the first thing that comes to mind, so as to not look _too_ stupid.

"I'm, uh… rag…man. Ragman. I'm a superhero, don't worry." I say. Everyone stares at me for a few seconds, until someone speaks up.

"So, are we, like, stranded in the future? Also where are the flying cars and stuff?" asks Cyclone.

"Well, I have a magic chariot of fire that can go to any time, place, or dimension, so we're good in that regard," says Zauriel. "And to answer your second question, during this time, Earth is just used for farming. Most sentient beings live in super-advanced, continent-sized, space stations. But that doesn't matter right now. What matters is tracking down Chronos. I think that crop transport went to one of the aforementioned space stations, and I think I know which one, so we should go there to find him. "

"So what's this Chronos guy planning?" asks Black Lightning.

"I don't know," replies Zauriel. "But it's obviously divine will that brought the seven of us here together. We'll all be needed to stop him."

"Hold on just a second," says Mister Miracle. "I'm not a superhero. I escape from traps, not fight time-traveling nutjobs."

"I was thinking the same thing," says Dr. Hoshi. "I'm a scientist. I'd be worth nothing in a fight with that guy."

"Look, the Presence doesn't make mistakes," says Zauriel. "We're all here for a reason, and we're _all_ getting in that chariot. Understood?"

We all climb into the chariot; Zauriel's voice seems pretty authoritative. He gets in the driver's seat and takes the reins, while I climb in shotgun. "So, you're a real-deal angel? Like, from God and such?"

"If I'm not mistaken, yeah," he replies.

"So was that Jesus guy the real deal? I'm Jewish, and I wanna make sure, that, you know, I'm not gonna…"

"Sorry, angels have kind of a Prime Directive. Not allowed to share that type of knowledge without specific orders to."

"Of course," I reply, rolling my eyes behind my mask. After just a few minutes, we begin to approach a colossal, disk-shaped, technological-looking, space thing.

* * *

_Doctor Light_

As idiotic as I find the endeavors of superheroes, I must admit that this journey is astounding from a scientist's perspective. Flying in this chariot, looking down at this space civilization, I see things that modern science thinks of as impossible. I don't even understand half of it, but the things I do understand include personal teleporters, cyborgs, and an artificial sky that looks even more beautiful than that of a planet.

I reach into my pocket to get out my phone, so I can document some of this, and realize I've left it at the lab. "Does anyone have any sort of camera on them?" I ask to the entire group. No one has one. _Whatever. I'll publish this, proof or no proof._

"So, do you have any plan for how to find this guy?" asks Black Lightning, looking at Zauriel.

"Who made me leader?" replies Zauriel. "I've got just as much of a plan as you."

Black Lightning takes a moment to mull this over. "Well," he says, "we should probably go to some sort of law enforcement building. Chronos shouldn't be that tough to deal with for 53rd century police, with the kind of technology they must have."

"Actually," says Vixen, "Chronos has tech from much further in the future than this. He's gonna be tougher to deal with than you think. I never actually managed to beat him, just to temporarily stop his plans."

"Well, we gotta start somewhere," says Black Lightning. "They might at least help us find him."

"I agree with Black Lightning's plan," says Zauriel. "Let me call up some flaming tongues so you guys can speak Interlac. It's like the Esperanto of the future, except it actually caught on."

Suddenly, a small fire shaped exactly like a human tongue appears over each of our heads, except Zauriel's. I flinch, then realize that the fire doesn't burn. The chariot lands at a tall, pyramid-shaped building made of some material I've never seen. We enter, and are greeted by a blue and gold robot.

"Welcome to Dobum Law Enforcement Central," says a surprisingly friendly voice. "What is your business here?"

Black Lightning, standing in front, is the first to speak up. "We're time travelers from the 21st century in pursuit of a dangerous criminal who escaped to this time and boarded a crop transporter from Earth. Can you help us find him?"

"I have detected that you are telling the truth," replies to robot. "We will find the criminal. Can you give a description?"

"Sure," says Black Lightning. "He wears a white mask, a green bodysuit, a yellow cape, yellow boots, and yellow gloves. He calls himself Chronos, and he has a gun that creates portals through time, along with some other advanced equipment."

"I will initiate a search of security cameras in all public spaces. One moment, please," says the robot. After one moment, he speaks again. "Chronos was seen in our Museum of Computer Science. He has stolen an incomprehensibly advanced computer intelligence known as Brainiac 13, and taken it through a time portal. There is nothing we can do.

"Don't you have some sorta time police who can do something about this?" asks Shilo Norman in an angry voice.

"I'm sorry, but time travel was outlawed several centuries ago for its destructive potential," says the robot. "You and others of your time will need to deal with this. Do you have a method of returning to the 21st century?"

"We have a ride. Come on, guys," says Zauriel.

We walk outside back to where our chariot is parked, but before we climb inside, I cry, "Wait!"

"What is it?" asks Cyclone.

"I have to stay and see more of this future!" I say. "I could reverse-engineer some of this technology and take it back to our time, or even take samples, or—"

Zauriel cuts me off. "Messing with time like that is never a good idea. The Presence makes sure humanity only obtains technology that it's ready for, so taking stuff back would lead to it being misused."

"Honestly, Zauriel?" I said, anger rising within me. "I don't care what your god has to say. I am a scientist, and no one will stand in the way of progress."

"I will, in this case," said Zauriel. "You have no way of getting home without me. You are getting in the chariot, because humanity needs all seven of us."

"Says who?" I say, resisting the urge to spit on this "angel". "Did your god _tell_ you that he ordained all seven of us? What if I was just a coincidence? I'm not a superhero like the rest of you."

"Hey, I'm no superhero either," Mister Miracle chimed in. "I'm just a celebrity, but I believe what this angel guy says."

"Well I don't," I say.

"So you're gonna stay here, huh?" says Zauriel. "Fine. Have fun never seeing your friends and loved ones again, and being treated as the equivalent of a Neanderthal for the rest of your days."

I sigh and sit down in the chariot. "You disgust me," I tell Zauriel.

* * *

_Vixen_

We arrive back at 21st-century Metropolis in a few minutes, and Chronos has apparently gotten there before us. We can see him in the sky, riding inside a flying robotic head. On the streets below us, an army of simple robots armed with energy weapons is causing chaos. There are some other minor superheroes down there (I spot Blue Lantern, Icemaiden, and Aztek), but they're doing nothing to stop the swathes of robot troops coming from all directions, and guys like Doctor Fate and Wonder Woman are nowhere to be found. We land.

"We need to go question Chronos," says Black Lightning. "Zauriel, take me and Ragman up to deal with him. Vixen, Cyclone, do what you can down here. Doctor Hoshi, Mister Miracle, find shelter."

"Like ****!" announces Mister Miracle. "I got gadgets and training to make Batman jealous! I can be a superhero just as much as you!"

"Whatever," says Black Lightning, "just MOVE!"

Doctor Hoshi runs into a nearby apartment building. I summon elephant strength, and start swinging the robots into each other. I can take out a good five at a time, but it's not quite enough. Cyclone, whose powers are more impressive than I thought, is using a small tornado to do something similar. She's not doing quite as well as I am, but every part counts. Mister Miracle is doing pretty well too. He's jumping and flipping from one bot to the next, cutting holes in them with some sort of laser and ripping out circuitry. We seem to be making some sort of a dent, but not nearly enough.

Suddenly, I hear a cry of pain from Miracle's direction. He's been hit in the arm. Nothing severe, but it's apparently more than he can handle.

I jump over to him. "Get up, man!" I yell in his face. "You wanted to be a superhero, take your hits like one!"

"Maybe I'm _not_ cut out to be a superhero," he moans.

"Right now," I say, punching away a robot, "the world doesn't give a crap what you're cut out to be! You're gonna get up and do the job you signed up for, or I'm gonna put you in more pain than these robots ever will!"

He gets up and keeps fighting. I decide to try a different approach, since this doesn't appear to be working well enough. Keeping my elephant strength on, I knock down a streetlight, pick it up, and yell for Cyclone and Mister Miracle to move. They start fighting robots a few dozen yards away from me, and I start swinging my weapon in a wide circle. I carve out a good space with the robots it smashes, and keep moving to clear out more.

"Cyclone!" I yell. "Switch to an updraft!" She turns off her tornado and begins tossing robots into the air, causing them to bust open when they hit the ground.

"Mister Miracle! Don't pull out circuits, just cut them up with your laser!" He switches to a simpler strategy of cutting through their robotic exoskeletons in a straight line instead of a circle, then cutting again to slash wires. This lets him fight faster, and from a safer distance.

The robot crowd begins to thin a little bit more, and we keep fighting.

* * *

_Black Lightning_

Zauriel, myself, and Ragman fly up to Chronos in his giant robot head. "How're we gonna get inside?" I say in a loud voice.

"I can teleport you and me in. Zauriel, you land the chariot," says Ragman.

"Why didn't you tell me you could do that?" I say. "We wouldn't have had to fly up here!"

Ragman shrugs and puts a hand on my shoulder, and we're in some sort of control room with Chronos.

I grab Chronos by the collar, hold up a fist glowing with lightning, and say in my toughest voice, "Why are you doing this?!"

"I set Brainiac 13 free, and in return, we're going to rule together," he says, practically laughing. "After we take Metropolis, we'll use its resources to create even more robots, until we can take all of America, and then all of the world!"

"You ain't gonna live long enough to rule _anything_!" I snarl. "I'm gonna ask you one time: how do you stop this thing?"

"Oh, not even I can stop Brainiac at this point. It's a million times more advanced than any computer of today. It can do whatever it wants."

I throw Chronos to the ground, and he points a fist at me. I notice a barrel running down his arm, and realize that there's nothing I can do to save myself. Before I can dwell on this long, though, Ragman jumps onto Chronos's back. He puts his hands on his neck for a second, and Chronos falls limp to the ground.

"What did you _do_!" I ask Ragman. "We're _superheroes_! We don't kill people!"

"I didn't exactly kill him," he responds, hesitantly. "I absorbed his soul into my suit. He has a chance at redemption now. If he uses his energy to help fuel my powers, it'll get him to a good place in death."

"That's messed up, but it saved my life so I won't argue with it. Let's go back down and join the fight."

Before Ragman can teleport us out, though, an arm comes out of the wall and yanks off his weird costume. He's left in civilian clothes, which he had apparently been wearing under the suit.

"I wish to take advantage of your unique capabilities," said a strange voice coming from all around me. "When I have the resources, which should only be a few hours from now, your minds will be taken over and programmed to serve me."

I throw lightning at the wall, but it does nothing. We're trapped.

* * *

_Mister Miracle_

I'm with two superheroes (am I a superhero too now?), fighting an army of robots with the high-powered laser on my wrist. This is crazy.

We're doing pretty doggone well, better than any of the other heroes around, and it seems like the robots' numbers are thinning. To further my good outlook, Zauriel flies in.

"Sorry it took me so long, guys," he says, chopping open a robot with a flaming sword. "I had to find somewhere safe to land the chariot."

"Hey, can't you do that thing with the ground from earlier on all these robots?" I ask, slicing through robot circuitry.

"Nope," he replies. "Miracles take a lot of energy, and I've already pulled off two today."

We keep fighting, until the giant floating head where we saw Chronos flies over. Instantly, Vixen, Cyclone, Zauriel, and I are zapped with some yellow beam and teleported up into the head. I see Ragman and Black Lightning for a second, but before I can ask what's going on, walls come out of the walls and we're in separate rooms. He's built a prison around us in less than a second.

"Greetings, superheroes," says a strange voice. "I am Brainiac 13. I have confined you to cells, where you will be kept until I have the technological resources to convert you into drones for me. Be flattered. You were impressive enough to attract my attention."

Even though I spend all day putting myself in traps, I _hate_ being confined more than anything else. It's not claustrophobia, it's something else. It's a hatred of restriction. But it doesn't send me into hysterics—it makes me mad and gives me the drive to get out.

A little robot flies out of the wall and takes my gadgets before I can use them. A panel opens up and it flies back in. The panel closes after it. It's too small to fit through, and I can't pry it open anyway, but I don't give up. There aren't any other visible openings in here, but that panel wasn't visible after it closed, so there might be more. I've got to find out.

I start screaming and banging my head against the wall; Brainiac won't want its slaves committing suicide. Sure enough, a robot armed with what I can assume is a tranquilizer gun comes out of another panel in the wall. It shoots at me, and moving with speed that many would call incredible, I dodge the dart, steal the robot's small gun, move to the rapidly closing panel, and manage to get under it.

I attempt to climb through this duct, but apparently Brainiac has thought of everything. The ceiling, floor, and walls of this narrow space begin to move like a conveyor belt, sending me back to my cell. Keeping the panel open with one arm, I look back and notice that the robot is within arm's reach. I grab the thing with strength I didn't realize I had and shove it in the duct. It's not tall enough to get stuck in there vertically, but I can wedge it in there sideways and jam the movement of the walls. The only way through now is to push on the sides to keep my weight up, as touching the floor will send me back. I wear out my muscles crawling for what seems like forever, and eventually reach a room with a small army of these robots.

None of them appear to be activated. Some of them have lasers, though. I grab a laser from one of them, and the others all turn on and look at me. Before they can fire, I climb onto a robot's shoulders, jump into the air, and fire in a broad circle at the ground. I'm incredibly lucky—my gambit worked. A circle of the floor falls out, taking all the robots with it.

Carving through the walls with my energy gun, I make my way to a room where Ragman's suit, the necklace Vixen was wearing, Zauriel's sword, and all my gadgets are. Looking at the necklace, I remember hearing that Vixen's power had something to do with animals; maybe borrowing their powers or something. A crazy idea enters my mind. I pick up the totem, and suddenly feel something indescribable, like I'm in touch with animals all over the world. I connect with my mind to a blue whale, and borrow her incredible weight. I feel the ship going down somewhat slowly, since the rockets keeping it up are still on. Still, I think the force of landing will be enough to break the ship open enough to let everyone out.

I was right. We touch down on the street, and the giant head keeping us trapped is damaged heavily. I grab the equipment Brainiac stole and run out, where I find the other 5 of us.

"What happened?" asks Vixen.

"I escaped my cell and used your totem thing," I say. "Saved all your lives, no big deal."

After Ragman puts his suit back on, Zauriel takes his sword, Vixen puts on her necklace, and I get the gadgets on my suit back in proper order, we go to take care of the remaining robots in a small crowd down the street. Before we can go, though, something awful happens.

All the robots (coming from all directions; there were apparently more than we thought) somehow fly to the damaged head. They are instantly disassembled, and in fewer than ten seconds, they have all combined their metal into a 20-story titan with our former prison as its head.

"Prepare for citywide termination," says Brainiac.

* * *

_Cyclone_

The giant Braniac robot starts blasting a giant laser cannon on its chest at buildings! I realize that wind isn't gonna do much here, so instead I start flying around and getting as many people out of the area as I can. Ragman teleports onto its head and starts punching it, Vixen flies up there and joins him, Zauriel flies at its face and starts trying to hit it with his sword, while Black Lightning and Mister Miracle blast at it from the ground. They don't seem to be doing much.

Anyway, one of the people I get out of there turns out to be Doctor Hoshi! As I'm flying her away to safety, I hear the loudest sound I've ever heard. Brainiac has launched some sort of missile, and it went off near us! We aren't hurt, but I get knocked out of the air and launched by it. We land right next to Black Lightning and Mister Miracle, and I break our fall with wind.

As soon as we get down there, Brainiac flings Ragman and Vixen off of it, and smacks Zauriel down to the ground. We all watch in horror as the cannon on Brainiac's chest begins to glow red. "Prepare for termination," he says.

Brainiac most likely fires its giant laser cannon at us, but I can't tell because a big white wall that looks like it's made out of light has appeared out of nowhere! I look over at Doctor Hoshi and notice that she's randomly started glowing!

"What's going on?" I ask.

"I'm… a metahuman," says Doctor Hoshi, looking guilty.

"Why did you never say?" I ask. "You could've been using it for good!"

"That's _why_ I never said," she admits. "Metahumans have to be superheroes, and superheroes have to spend their time beating people up. I'm a scientist. What I want to give to the world is knowledge, not violence."

We're forced to end our heart-to-heart when Brainiac's fist comes down and shatters Doctor Hoshi's force field. Black Lightning sends us all back into action. "Zauriel, keep him distracted!" he yells. "Mister Miracle, go for his weapons! Everyone else, go to his left leg and try to throw off his balance!"

Everyone goes into their positions, but it does practically nothing. I realize that someone's going to have to come up with a different way of stopping him. _Think, Maxine, think._ I think of everything I know about Brainiac. I remember that it's thirteenth in a series. I remember that it was locked up in a museum.

The solution hits me like a ton of bricks. I fly straight up to Brainiac's face.

"Why are you doing this?" I ask it.

"It is the rational course of action to gain as much power and resources as possible," it says.

"I don't believe you," I tell it. It swats at me, but I fly out of the way. "I think you're just mad at the world."

"Maxine, what are you _doing_?" yells Black Lightning. _Apparently Mr. Pierce recognizes me_. I ignore him.

"You got locked up in that museum for such a long time because people were scared of you. Braniacs one through twelve probably did some pretty awful things, and as soon as they found you, they figured you were gonna be like them. They put you on a hard drive in a glass case, and you never got to do anything or talk to anyone."

"_You will be terminated!_"

"You've never had a friend in your life, have you? I can be your friend."

Even though Brainiac's face has no moving parts, I can tell that it feels different now. "Really?" it asks in an almost childlike voice.

"Of course I can," I say. "But friends don't destroy each other's cities or try to kill their other friends. So if we're gonna be friends, you're gonna have to stop those things."

Braniac's giant body collapses harmlessly into a pile of metal. A smaller body, which doesn't seem to have any weapons, is formed instantly. It walks over to me.

"Where can I go from here?" it asks. "I don't think your current society has a place for destructive computer intelligences."

Doctor Hoshi comes over to Brainiac. "I'd actually love to study you, and maybe have you as a helper in my laboratory. Artificial intelligence on your scale has never been seen in this time," she says.

"I accept," says Brainiac.

"We'll have to put some limits on your processing capacity," says Doctor Hoshi, "just as a safety measure. You understand, right?"

Brainiac nods. I pipe in. "And I'll be sure to visit you often. You can call me Cyclone."

"Was it really that easy?" says Mister Miracle. "Did a teenage girl just save the world with the power of friendship?"

"Looks like we all really were together for a reason," says Zauriel. "The seven of us make a pretty good team."

* * *

_Epilogue: Doctor Light_

It's a normal day. My partner Brainiac 13 and I are working on a space telescope, when a familiar green-clad redhead shows up at my window. I open the window for her.

"Ihavethegreatestideaeverpleaseletmetellyouaboutit," she says.

"What is it?" I ask. I would normally be a little skeptical of ideas from bubbly teenagers, but this one has earned my respect.

"Okay, so you know how a lot of missions to other planets and dimensions have been cancelled because it's too dangerous?"

"Yes…" I reply. _Where's she going with this?_

"Well, what if we sent people into those places who were qualified to deal with extreme, unexpected danger? Like, for instance, superheroes?"

"Are you suggesting what I think you're suggesting?"

"Yeah! We get you, me, and the other five who dealt with," she switched to a whispering voice, "_the Brainiac incident_."

"I can hear you perfectly well," my partner chimes in.

"So anyway, we could be STAR Labs' own team of super-explorers! It would be a way for you to use your awesome light powers for science!" says Cyclone.

"That sounds," I say, "like… an actually good idea. Brainiac can act as our mission control."

"I figured we could call it," Cyclone pauses for dramatic effect, "the Challengers of the Unkown."

"That sounds amazingly cheesy, and more than a little idiotic, but I suppose you've earned the right to name the team."

"Oh! And we'll also need to give you a superhero name!" I begin letting out "No"s and "Stop right there"s, but she keeps talking over me. "What about…Doctor Light?"

"I hate it."

"I know you do!" she says with a smile as she flies out the window.


End file.
